Machine for producing wadding



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 k N\ a fill m Q mm 5-2::-Iii-Eli-iii.tiiiiiiiiiii-iii} l I W NW! Jan. 29, 1935. R. 1.. LOOMIS MACHINE FOR PRODUCING WADDING Filed 001;. 27, 1932 Jan. 29, 1935. R. 1.. Looms 1,989,455

MACHINE FOR PRODUCING WADDINCn Filed Oct. 27, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet" 2 sides.

' finished goods.

Patented Jan. 29, 1935 UNITED STATES 4 Claims. (01. .91--55 The invention relates to apparatus for forming sized wadding and similar materials, and particularly to the production of wadding having two skin-like size surfaces on respective opposite It is an aim to present apparatus suitable for carrying out the process set forth in my co-pending application of even date.

It is an important object to efiect the conduct of the lap sheet from a series of cards without disruption or material disturbance of the lay of the fibers in the lap formed for the purpose of being coated or provided with skin-like surface, and particularly to avoid the bending of the sheet after sizing in such manner as to stretch one freshly sized face at any time after the other has been sized, but particularly after such other side has been dried.

As has been explained in my.process application, it is found essential to so handle the sheet that when the size has been applied to one side and dried, after sizing the other side no stretching of the newly sized second surface will occur, which would cause cockling of that surface in the The stretching of one side of a lap sheet after wetting both sides simultaneously is similarly obj ectionable. The present apparatus is designed to function in such manner that the stretching of the sheet on the second wetted side,

- or on either of two wetted sides after one is dried,

is obviated. g

In prior machines and methods the lap has been sized by conveyingit against and from a wet sizing roll, turningit backward from the roll over a dry roll to the drier where the sheet with dry unsized side down rests on a conveyor; At timesespecially where .a thin lap sheet is involved, or a heavy application of size-due to a thin place in the lap or a, bubble in the size on the roll, some of the size will press through the sheet to the dry roll, causingthe sheet to adhere to the dry roll and wind thereon instead of passing to the drier. Much delay and waste of material results. Also, due to the necessity for special watching, and the tangling tendency of the raw lap, the prior machines must be'run slowly. It is a purpose of the present invention to present apparatus which will operate without liabilities of the sticking of the sheet as last mentioned, and to enable operation of the apparatus at much higher speeds.

Additional objects, advantages and features of invention reside in the construction, arrangement and combination of parts as will be understood from the following description and from the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an apparatus in one form embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary View of a modification.

Figure 3 is a similar view of a further modification.

Figure 4 is a detail section greatly enlarged of a wadding as produced in prior apparatus. Figure 5 is a similarview of wadding produced by my apparatus.

Figure 6 is a cross section-of a conveyor belt for my apparatus. e I I I Figure '7 is a detail ofthe waxing device. I t Figure 8 is a fragmentary View of a still further modification of i 1 There isillustrated formally a series of card's 10, which maybe of any usual or approved construction for the necessary function of building up a lap sheet 11 on the endless conveyor 12 thereunder, and the conveyor'may be of standard construction although driven more rapidly. It is desirable, however, to use a greater number of cards than in prior machines, to compensate for the greater speed of the conveyor12 as this iricrease of cards is thought preferable to increasing the speed of fewer cards. The apparatus is provided with any suitable operating means for driving it at a materially greater speed than is practiced in prior machines of-the kind. I'have' operated my machines at double the speeds possible 30 in prior machines. Extending from the delivery end of the conveyor 12, there is an inclined endless conveyor 13 arranged to receive the'lapfrom the conveyor 12, and over the upper and delivery end of the inclined conveyor there are located two size tanks 15 in which respective wet rolls 16 and 17 are mounted and entering the size 18. They are of such diameter that they extend considerably above the tanks and their proximal surfaces project over the edges of the tanks into close spaced relation so as to receive and compress the lap 11 and lift it from the conveyor 13. "In this particularfinstancefa drier 14 is erected adjacent the roll 16, having a receivingopening on a level with the top of this roll, ahorizontal endless belt conveyor 19 beingmountedin the drier with its receiving end at the receiving opening of the drier. Any usual heating means 20*may beprovided above and below each of the'conveyors, and air circulation may be provided in any usual manner not shown, inlets and outlets therefor being indicated at 21 and 22. Y

The delivery end of the conveyor 19 stops within the drier, and a second similar conveyor 23 is mounted over the one ATENT the conveyor apparatus. 5,

19 operating in an opposite direction, the receiving end being located adjacent the delivery end of the conveyor 19, and the delivery end of the conveyor 23 terminates at the delivery opening 24 of the drier, from which the stock may be conveyed and disposed of in any customary or special way as discretion may dictate.

Under the conveyor 19 there is located a box 24 for liquid wax 25 and in this there is mounted a dipped roll 26, the lower part of which sets in the wax, so as to become coated therewith. Engaged with the upper part of the roll 26 and clear of the wax there is a conveyor waxing roll 27 resting against the roll 26 so as to receive thereagainst the wax carried by the surface of the roll 26, but both rolls rotating so as to squeeze on the major portion of such wax, the latter falling back into the box 24. The upper side of the roll 27 rests firmly against the face of the conveyor 19 and its periphery travels with the face of the conveyor, applying a'very small amount of wax to the face of the conveyor when the. machine is in operation. Owing to the heat source 20 within the drier 14, the rolls 26 and 27 are kept, quite warm, and such heat may also be suflicient to melt the wax in the box 24. Other means for heating both the box 24 and rolls may be employed if desired, The wax may be beeswax, orrother wax found most advantageous for the purposes for which the machine is used. The

wax does not make any change in the appearance of the wadding produced, and the function of the roll 2'7 is much on the order of redistribution on the conveyor. The conveyors l9 and 23 have been formed of the usual woven wire or fiber fabrics customarily used in such conveyors as heretofore constructed, consisting of wire or a cotton fiber woven with special regard to the nature of the stresses involved and the supporting surface'desired. The fabric may be reticulated if desired, to facilitate access of air to the under side of the lap sheet. a

The waxing roll 27 preferably consists of a porous cushion material in order to hold sufficient amount of wax and also so that it may apply the wax effectively to irregular surfaces of the conveyor. The dipped 'roll 26 may be of metal or other material. a

. The conveyors and rolls referred toare all to be power driven by usual operative connections, not shown, the construction of which is well understood and requires no illustration.

As in paper making machinery, the respective conveyor units may be driven by separate motors, or other meansprovided to give a relative ad-, justment of position of parts as required, or to vary the speed at different parts to compensate for changes in the product. j

In;the operation of this apparatus, the cards being supplied with material as usual and in operation to build up a lap on the conveyor 12, the size being supplied, melted wax provided in the boxes and the conveyors and rolls being in proper motion, the sheet 11 is fed between rolls 16 .and 17 where it is wetted on both sides with the size, forming weak skins28 and 29 on respective sides of the sheet, either of which is easily stretched, as explained. On passing upwardly between the rolls 16 and 17, the sheet may be either allowed to pass closely around the roll 16, which will stretch the-opposite outer face orskin 29, and then as the sheet moves toward the drier horizontally, the tendency of the upper side to cockle iscompensated for by operating the conveyor 19 at a slightly higher speed than the roll 16, so

- out that the lower side or skin 28 of the sheet is now stretched until the upper skin 29 lies flat. Or, as may be found preferable, the sheet is formed with a slight loop 30 above the rolls 16 and 17 (see Figure 3) so that by slight inherent resistance of the structure of the sheet to longitudinal compression at this time, it is caused to rise from between the rolls 16 and 17 without material bending of either, and is curved in the air, without support, before it enters the drier. In being so curved, thev wet side 28 at-the left as it rises, and at the under side as it moves into the drier, is caused to cockle, avoiding stretching of the outer or opposite side, and as the sheet levels upon encountering the conveyor 19, these cockles are flattened and the material thereof brought into parallel with the top skin 29, the sheet being restored to its original form and relation of fibers. The rolls 16-17 are closely below the conveyor 19.

Consequently, in passing over the conveyor 19 both sides being sized, they are held in planiform parallel relation and are dried or partly dried, the drying being completed on the upper conveyor 23. In passing from the conveyor 19 to the one 23, the sheet is bent as it approaches the conveyor 23, and by providing a certain amount of slack in the sheet, forming a loop 31, it is caused to cockle on the inner side 29 untilfit levels out at the conveyor 23, when the cockles straighten out, the surface returning to initial parallel relation to the side 28, and being so held on the conveyor 23 while the drying of the wadding is completed.

As shown in Figure 8, a paddle wheel 32 may be mounted outwardly of the receiving end of the conveyor 23- to receive the sheet 11 as it passes from conveyor 19 to conveyor 23 and cause a regular slight folding or momentary wrinkling of the face 29 of the sheet which engages on the wheel. This wheel may be made with resilient spokes 33 at each end, highly flexible and light in weight so that they may move closer together at their extremities as the sheet is bent, to compensate for the contraction of the linear measurement of the sheet as a result of being bent to return over the conveyor23 and spring apart as the sheet returns to-planiform shape. The spokes may have rounded ends and may rest directly against the sheet 11, or may be provided with transverse reel pieces which extend across the face of the sheet while it rests thereon.

In Figure2, the apparatus is modified by enabling the forming of the two skin surfaceson the lap sheet by successive sizing and drying thereof. In this instance also a further novel arrangement of the feed, sizing device and drier is evolved permitting not only elimination of the cockling of one side, but also securing greater density of fibers in the skins formed, a more nearly continuousv surface in the desired plane, and a better approximation of a perfect planiform face on each side of the sheet.

In this instance the sheet 11 is sized with the fibers in a'relation which is not disturbed before the sheet enters the drier thus applied completely dried in a fiber skin.

The carding and first conveyors 12 and 13 may be as before, and from the conveyor the sheet of lap 11 is lifted past the outer side of a size tank 15 and wet roll 16 therein located at the same level with respect to the drier as in Figure 1, but having a presser roll 31 thereover. The drier smooth, denseand the sizing 3 i-has a conveyor therein at the lower part, butat the delivery end of the conveyor an outlet door 36 is formed in the drier through which the sheet may pass, the drying of the sized side being completed on the one conveyor. Outwardly of this opening 36 a guide roll 37 is mounted, under and upwardly against which the sheet passes to a second wet roll 38, set in a size bath or tank 39, a presser roll 49 being located vertically over the roll 36. There is a second drier tunnel 41 having a receiving opening on a level with the roll 36 and having a conveyor 42 therein similar to the one 35, but having opposite movement. It delivers the sheet finished through the discharge opening 43 where the goods may be wound, baled, or otherwise disposed of.

The product of the struction in Figure 1 will be a wad sheet having smooth skins on both sides without cockling or pucker, each skin being the same as has been heretofore produced on one side only of wadding; in addition, by reason of the waxing of the conveyors, and elimination of tendency of the size sheet to stick, I am able to double the production, very materially lowering the cost in this feature, and also effecting a material reduction of cost by elimination of wind-ups which have heretofore involved a considerable loss of time, and material. No greater number of operatives is required for operating my machines at high speed than were required for the previous slow speed machines. The possibilities of use of and the market for wadding are thereby materially extended.

The product of the structure shown in Figure 2 in addition to having the advantage of two smooth sides is also further improved in producing a skin of greater fiber density and strength with a given amount of size, as well as securing a greater continuity of surface, and a more nearly planiform one.

In order to appreciate how these improvements are accomplished it should be noted that the lap sheet has a substantial weight, and that certain face fibers therein will tend to, and do in fact, rise higher than others when they are at the upper side of the sheet, but that at the lower side when resting on a flat support, the weight of the mass above will press these stronger, or more projecting fibers into plane with others which do not tend to project so far. Also, when at the upper side of the sheet certain fibers will tend to, and do, lie much below the mean desired surface, and when at the lower side while the sheet is laid on a plane surface, the mass behind them as well as their own weight will press them into the same plane with those fibers which would under prior methods lie outwardly of the desired surface plane. Consequently, after application of size, the sheet being laid with the sized face on a planiform support, will be dried and set with more fibers immediately at the surface; and those which would be high or low in prior practice are in my product fixed exactly at the ideal plane desired. After removal of the sheet the surfaces tend to hold the form in which they are dried.

As shown in Figure 6, the conveyor belt may be a woven fabric 44, on the outer side of which a coating of pyrc-xylin 45, or other material is applied, including synthetic gums such as Bakelite, suitably united with the fabric, and.

this form of belt is used in the same way as described above, with application of wax. When the sized sheet is laid with a wet side against this kind of belt, it is dried with a high finish, or even a gloss, by the use of proper materials. Thus, powdered material or fine fibers or both, with or without a silicate solution may be in- I cluded or introduced into the size applied to the surface of the lap, and this will enhance the formation of a skin which is capable of taking a gloss or other high finish.

I claim:

l. A wad forming apparatus consisting of a lap conveyor, a sizing device constructed to size both sides of a lap sheet simultaneously, a drier, a horizontal conveyor in the drier, means to convey the wet sized sheet from the sizing device through the drier, and means to apply waterrepellant material to said conveyor in the drier.

2. A wad forming apparatus consisting of a lap conveyor, a sizing device receiving therefrom, a drier, a conveyor in the drier'having a glossy continuous water-repellant surface, means being included to convey a lap sheet from the sizing device and lay the wet face of the sheet on the last named conveyor and means to W8.X

the conveyor surface during operation.

3. A wad forming apparatus consisting of a lap conveyor, a sizing device receiving therefrom, a drier, a conveyor in the drier having a water-repellant surface, a waxing roller revoluble in engagement with the outer face on the lower reach of the said conveyor in the drier, means being included to convey a lap sheet from the sizing device and lay the wet face of the sheet on the last named conveyor.

l. In a cotton wadding machine of the character described, a lap sheet conveyor, means for sizing both sides of the sheet, a drier, a conveyor therein having a receiving end next to the sizing means, means to project and deliver the lap sheet upwardly from the sizing means and located below and outwardly of the receiving end of said conveyor in the drier, such distance that the lap sheet may be projected upwardly 

